Rebecca Hauschild
For the Daily Press

Artesia is one of the top five safest cities in New Mexico, according to Artesia Police Chief Kirk Roberts, who said the city was ranked fifth in the state for its public safety and low crime rate.

Roberts shared results from a study by home security company Safewise at the May 27 City Council meeting. Safewise used FBI crime data to compile a list of the top five safest cities in New Mexico.

The data encompassed instances of violent crime, including aggravated assault, murder, rape, robbery, and property crimes such as burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft, and arson, per 1,000 residents. Cities are ranked based on this combined crime rate.

Data for 2025 was taken as of the first three months for the study published March 17.

Artesia’s violent crime rate in 2025 was 2.1%, according to the report, an improvement from 3.6% in 2024 after an increase from 2.4% reported in 2023.

Property crime rates were 29.6% in 2025, followed by 29.5% last year and 18.4% in 2023.

Corrales was ranked as the safest city in New Mexico, according to the survey, followed by Anthony, Sunland Park and Rio Rancho.

“I want to say for sure that you have a great police department,” Roberts said to the council. “It really is a statement about our community, our community leaders, you, and what we’re doing right now. It has an effect. We weren’t in the top five until this year.”

New body cams and drones

Roberts also reported his staff completed training on new body cameras with expanded functions. The cameras can send an alert if a firearm is pulled and someone can watch what is happening in real time.

They have a “Watch Me” function that officers can activate that sends a notification to a sergeant. The sergeant can watch in real time and talk to the officer through the speaker on the camera.

Officers have completed training on the new drone program and have received FAA licensure to fly drones and put in flight plans, Roberts said.

Bike patrol

Police officers are using new e-bikes purchased after previous approval from the city council. The bike patrol teams up with patrol vehicles that can pull over vehicles or assist in other ways. The bike officers will patrol Jaycee Park on weekends and ride through certain neighborhoods at night.

“I did bike patrol in Rio Rancho,” Roberts said. “It’s a lot of fun. You can ride up on people doing all sorts of crazy stuff. And they had no idea you’re there. So, it works well.”

Meanwhile, Roberts said the Artesia Police Department has also been cracking down on minibikes driven by minors on city streets. Police towed four so far, and Roberts said the parents will be cited in future incidents as the activity violates state laws against unlicensed minors driving any motorized vehicle – car or bike.

“Unfortunately, we have had four of them crash with one pretty serious injury,” Roberts said. “It may seem heavy-handed to some people, but we can’t just open the floodgate and let every type of vehicle in the world just be cruising around our streets.”